This is about the murder of W M Shumate. Submitted by: Bunny Shumate Freeman The Dallas Morning News May 6 1890 --------------------------------------------- Dead Man's Property Found in Their Procession BONHAM, Tex., May 5 -- Sheriff Montgomery of Rains county passed through the city today with the man Johnson who murdered old man Shumate. Johnson and his wife were arrested over near Monkstown, and both were placed in irons. Sheriff Chaney and his deputies rendered valuable assistance to Sheriff Montgomery. Hon. C L Galloway of this city will answer the speech of Hon.T J Brown on the railroad commission at this place on the 17th. -------------------------------------------------- Another Account. HONEY GROVE, Tex., May 5 W H Johnson and wife, who murdered Capt. Shumate fifteen miles north of this city last night, just after dark. Johnson and wife drove up to the residence of Mr. T M White yesterday afternoon and asked permission to camp in the lot, which was granted. About dark Sheriff W F Montgomery and young Shumate rode up to the same house and second lodging for the night. The sheriff told his business and describe the parties he was looking for. Mr. White informed him tat a man and woman answering his description were camping in the lot. The sheriff, assisted by Mr. White, arrested the parties at once. Johnson is about 23 years old and his wife is 17. The woman has a baby 2 months old. The man and woman were barefooted when arrested. They had with them three horses, two mules and two wagons. The sheriff left with his prisoners on the 12:17 train today for Rains county -------------------------------------------------- Another Account. EMORY, Tex, May 5 -- W F Montgomery, sheriff of this county, came in this evincing with H W Johnson and his wife, who are charged with the murder of Col. Shumate, in this county last Sunday week. Mr. Montgomery has been on the trail of these parties since last Friday morning and overhauled them near Monkstown, in that northeast corner of Fannin county. They had the wagons and the two mules and one of the horses they took from Col. Shumate. They had traded the other tow horses and had two in their place. Johnson had just traded the watch belonging to Col. Shumate for a pistol, and the party who had traded for the watch gave it up and got his pistol back. Mr. Montgomery has shown a commendable zeal in following up these parties. -------------------------------------------------- St. Louis Republic Newspaper May 6 1890 Alleged Murders Caught Special to The Republic. BONHAM, Tex., May 5 -- Last night at Monkstown, this (Panola) county, Sheriff Montgomery of Raines County captured Johnson and his wife, the alleged murders of Col. Shumate, killed in Raines County April 27. Johnson and his wife left the scene of the murder the evening after the crime, having two teams one of horses, the other of mules, Johnson driving one team and his wife the other. Officers have been in search of them ever since that time. The teams were said to be the property of Shumate. About dusk yesterday evincing Sheriff Montgomery rode to a house near Monkstown, and by accident noticed the teams there and recognized them. Immediately afterward the Johnson's appeared and were arrested. The murder was a cold blooded one, Shumate being an old man, and at the time was living with Johnson and his wife, who were renters on his farm. -------------------------------------------------- The Dallas Morning News May 10 1890 -------------------------------------------------- SHUMATE ASSASSINATION. -------------------------------------------------- Johnson and Wife Remanded Without Benefit of Bail -- The Wife's Confession. EMORY, Rains Co.,Tex., May 8 -- Quite a crowd was in Emory yesterday in attendance upon the examining trial of H W Johnson and his wife, charged with the murder of Col. Shumate. It was supposed that all of the testimony would be circumstantial. After spending pretty much all day in examining witnesses, the woman said that she desired to make a confession. After being warned she confessed to the murder, giving the details. She stated that Col. Shumate was sitting reading when Johnson struck the fatal blow with the hammer of a hatched that the first blow crushed in the skull and that the hatchet sunk to the handle in his head. The murder was committed for the purpose of getting away with Col. Shumate's money and property. Outside of her confession, it was one of the strongest cases against, the defendants found on circumstantial evidence. The evidence is substantially that Col. Shumate had a room in the house with Johnson, who was cultivating Col. Shumate's land. Johnson had repeatedly made threats against the life of Shumate. On Sunday evening after supper Col. Shumate left Mr. Shepherd's, whom he took his meals, to go to his room. Next day Johnson was in Emory, eight miles from where he lived, by 8:30 o'clock and tried to get goods on Col. Shumate's account, but not having an order, he could not get the goods. He went the same day to Donelton and Miller Grove, and at each place tried to get goods by giving a mortgage on the horse that he was riding. He told parties in the neighborhood that he had taken Col. Shumate to town and that he had taken the train. On Monday evening he was seen driving up the horses and mules. Wednesday some of the neighbors going to the house found the place vacated and all the stock gone. Suspicions of foul play arose and they sent to town and telegraphed to Bells to know if Col. Shumate had gone there. Thursday morning receiving an answer that he had not, search was made and the mutilated body of Col. Shumate was found. There was found in the room signs of blood on the floor, walls and where a horse had been led up in the yard. Blood showed in the yard on each side of where the horse was. The horse tracks were followed to where a body seemed to have been thrown in the sand. Bloody signs indicated where the head had struck. From there the body had been dragged some twelve of fifteen yards out in a thicket. Johnson was overhauled in the northwest corner of Fannin county, with the two wagons, a pair of mules, one horse and all of the household clothing and plunder of Col. Shumate. He had traded Col. Shumate's watch and two of the horses. The watch hand horses have been recovered from the parties to whom Johnson said that he had sold them. Upon this evidence Johnson and his wife were remanded to jail, bail being refused them. Just after dinner, as Johnson was being brought into the court room, he selected a time when the crowd was thick and made a dash for liberty, but Mr. Adams one of the guards who was with the sheriff, shot him just as he was about to jump out the court house door and brought them down. The ball passed through the fleshy part of the arm and is but a slight wound. -------------------------------------------------- St. Louis Republic Newspaper May 11 1890 A MURDER CONFESSED. -------------------------------------------------- Henry Johnson's Wife Tells of the Killing of Farmer Shumate. Special to The Republic. EMORY, Tex., (Rains Co.) May 10 -- W M Shumate, a wealthy farmer, was murdered a few days ago, and simultaneously his tenant,Henry Johnson and, his wife, with whom Shumate lived, disappeared, taking with them two wagons and five head of horses and mules and all the household and kitchen furniture. Half a mile from the dwelling the body of Shumate was found, the head terribly crushed and in an advanced state of decomposition. The Johnson's were arrested while trying to make their escape into the Territory and had their preliminary trial last night. Henry Johnson denied all knowledge of the killing. When the wife was called she startled the court by making confession. She said while the old man sat dozing by the fire, Henry, her husband, struck the deceased on the top of the head with a hatchet, sinking the same to the handle. The old man sat sometime motionless. He never spoke or groaned, but fell to the floor and was taken off by the husband, after having received repeated blows with an axe. All was done in her presence, and she assisted in removing the blood and bloodstains. Up to the moment of the confession the evidence was all circumstantial. -------------------------------------------------- The Dallas Morning News Oct. 9 ,1890 -------------------------------------------------- THE SHUMATE HORROR .----------------------- Nettie Johnson Acquitted and Her Husband Gets the Death Penalty. EMORY, Rains Co., Tex., Oct. 7 -- The case of Nettie Johnson, nee Ferguson, was tried yesterday. The jury returned a verdict of "Not guilty." The prisoner, who is not a bad looking woman manifested at this time the only emotion visible during the trial and upon the recitation of the verdict clapped her hands for joy. The turn in the tide so favorable to Nettie was occasioned by the interest taken in her case by a brother and uncle, the latter being the wealthiest citizen of Bells. A brief resume of the case may not prove uninteresting: Col. W M Shumate, a man of 70 years, lived on a farm eight miles of Emory, having the Johnson's employed as hired help. On the night of Sunday, April 27, as Shumate sat dozing in his chair, Johnson knocked him on the head with the back of a hatched. The body when found a few days later in a thicket into which it had been dumped from a horse showed the skull crushed by at least three blows inflicted by a blunt instrument. The body was taken to Bells by son of deceased for interment at which place the family resides. The night of the murder was evidently employed in removing traces as clots of blood and brains were discovered concealed in some weeds near by, and the hat and overcoat of the victim were burned. On Monday Johnson came to Emory and tried to mortgage the team of Shumate for groceries, saying that the owner had gone to Bells. Falling here he went to Miller Grove and Donelton on a similar mission, and failed to procure food at both places. Monday night the Johnson's decamped, each driving a two horse wagon containing plundered of the murdered man. Sheriff Montgomery pursued and overhauled them at the mouth of Bolad'Arc near Red river. Returning by Bells a mob threatened to wreak summary vengeance on Johnson and upon his arrival at Emory lynch law was openly advocated, and only prevented by the address and personal influence of the sheriff. Johnson was convicted as has already appeared in The News, last Saturday with penalty of death. Today his counsel argued a motion for a new hearing which was promptly overruled by Judge Terhune. The Dallas Morning News Oct. 9 ,1890 -------------------------------------------------- The Dallas Morning News April 16 1891 Preparations for the Johnson Hanging. EMORY, Tex., April 14 -- The tie business seems to be opening up in good earnest through this section. Preparations are being made for the hanging of Henry Johnson on April 27 for the murder of Wm. Shumate. The death warrant has been place in the hands of the sheriff.